Do You Think I’m Sexy?

You know I can’t resist a challenge, so when Mommyfriend posted about the Nickelodeon ParentsConnect Sexy Mama Month, I had to step up to collect my (hopefully well-earned) badge, and nominate a few ladies whose sexiness is undeniable. But first, in the interest of feminism and my own temper, let’s talk about sexy.

I was actually thinking about “sexy” this morning: what constitutes it, what it isn’t, why it is such hard word to use. The latter was the easiest for me to answer. Our society pushes the Virgin/Whore dichotomy on women from the earliest ages. It’s adorable to dress your daughter in Prostitot Chic, but even while she’s bouncing her buttons off to Rhianna’s latest ode to getting the booty, she must be sure to blow the most innocent of kisses, lest you focus on her bare midriff and get the wrong idea. As a society, we can’t decide if we want women to be independently minded regarding their sexuality, or if we want them to conform to patriarchal ideals of chastity. To paraphrase Tom Jones (and you should absolutely do this in any situation even remotely apropos) the ideal is someone you’d like to flaunt AND take to dinner. Or, to quote Nikki Sixx (all my role models are rock stars), “A woman should be a lady on your arm and whore behind the door.”

Do you have any idea how exhausting it is to attempt to fill all those roles? And at the right times? Lord above. Sexy is a hard word to use because it is a major bitch to fulfill! Now I won’t win my badge because I cursed. But according to AskMen.com, men find dirty mouths really sexy, so maybe I’m still in!

What isn’t sexy is a trick question because there is an audience for everything. Just watch a season of Secret Diary of a Call Girl and you’ll get filled in on folks who fancy sploshing, pony play, toilet bowl licking, and all manner of things you’d need to be either very desperate, or very bored to even imagine in the first place. Even the star of the show, Billie Piper, is a big question mark. I know men who find her luscious, and men who find her completely unbelievable as a sex symbol.

What we are told is not sexy is anything that does not conform to the Playboy ideal of big hair, big boobs, and a big Photoshop brush. If it is obviously over 30 years of age, 130lbs, and/or has hips, throw it back. We are told that sexy is young, tight, sleek, slightly moist, and ready to say yes to you, and no to everyone else.

What is actually sexy is entirely relative, and is absolutely why I will never try to fight you for your husband. I find my husband absolutely attractive and very sexy, and I’m so blinded by all things Bryan that no one else even registers–that’s actually true, and possibly embarrassing in its schoolgirl crushiness. But as Salt-n-Pepa said, “He keeps me on Cloud Nine just like the Temps; He’s not a fake wannabe tryin’ to be a pimp; He dresses like a dapper don, but even in jeans; He’s a God-sent original, the man of my dreams.”*

Sexy is difficult to pin down because it means so many different things to so many different people. So while some might find the ParentsConnect Sexy Mamas Month icon picture of a thin, mostly naked woman, jumping on a bed sexy, I find the angle of her legs alarming because that’s not going to be a pretty landing. I also find it insulting because it insinuates that this is what a “Sexy Mama” looks like. And while some Sexy Mamas might look like this or better, there are hosts of brilliant and beautiful women who do not find representation here.

But I should get to the question portion of the blog, shouldn’t I? ParentsConnect asks:

What makes you feel sexy?

Who’s your sexy mama role model?

What’s your best tip to help other moms feel super-confident and sexy?

And The Outside Lane answers:

I feel sexy all damned day long (that’s more dirty talk for the male audience.) You know why? Because I feel sexy when I feel powerful, and I feel powerful because of my intelligence, my wit, and my strong legs. I feel sexy because when I walk, my posture tells you that I am force to be reckoned with, the world is my catwalk, and my theme song is The Imperial March. When I am strutting across the office, that’s what is playing in my head. The only times I don’t feel sexy are when I am feeling stupid over a mistake I’ve made, or when I’m bent over the backseat trying to scrub baby vomit out of the floorboard, but even then I’m aware that for some people (like the aforementioned husband) my backside is a major selling point.

My imaginary sexy mama role model is Judy Dench as M in the James Bond series. She is strong. She is powerful. She is a snappy dresser, and she doesn’t have to resort to flirtation to get her way. My reality sexy mama role model is Hilary Clinton. Our politics differ, but she is strong, she is powerful, she is a snappy dresser, and she doesn’t have to resort to flirtation to get her way.

My best tip to help other mothers feel sexy and confident is this: Find your strengths and play to them. Find your weaknesses and make peace with them. Get yourself a theme song, and then strut because the world is your catwalk, too.

ParentsConnect also wanted to know if there were other Sexy Mamas we wanted to nominate, and why. Here are a few of mine:

Jamie of A Dash of Domestic, who is strong, powerful, a snappy dresser, and who makes managing a home economy look easy. She is huge-hearted, giving, and does her utmost to mentor her fellow women into more successful lifestyles. Sharing is sexy.

Krista of One & Four, who is strong, powerful, a snappy dresser, and who is one of the best graphic artists I know. She has battled just about everything life can throw at you with bravery and grace, and is making the world a better place for four very lucky men.

Arwen, of ArwenBicknell.com, who is strong, powerful, a snappy dresser, and who makes Having It All look like a piece of cake, even when she’s stuck in traffic for eight hours in a snowstorm. Actually, Arwen is probably my real Sexy Mama role model. If I weren’t so lazy, I might have a shot at molding myself in her image, alas.

Gina, who doesn’t have an open blog yet, but who should because she is strong, powerful, a snappy dresser, and an example of how Single Parenting is not only just okay, but can produce excellence, intelligence, and massive contribution to society.

Irene, who also needs an open blog, though the world might not be ready to laugh that hard. She is also strong, powerful, and a snappy dresser.

As are June, Amy, JulieAnne, Emily (who might just become Thor’s Sexy Mama-in-Law one day) and a score of other women who haven’t taken to the internets yet.

Sexy, to quote Fun Boy Three, ain’t what you do, it’s the way that you do it. And that’s what gets results.

So, ParentsConnect, I humbly submit myblogself for your perusal, not unlike one of Littlefinger’s girls in his King’s Landing brothel. Check me out. Judge the straightness of my teeth, the curve of my lips, the heft of my–well, let’s not get too close. We’ve only just met. But let me know, as Rod Stewart so prophetically asked, “Do ya think I’m sexy?”